This provocative assertion, first made by Jared Bernstein on HBO's Realtime with Bill Maher and repeated in the introduction to his keynote presentation, kick started the NASW-NYC Annual Meeting on May 9, 2013. Dr. Bernstein, PhD, MSW, is a Senior Fellow for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and before that he served as Chief Economist and Economic Advisor to Vice President Joe Biden.

Most importantly to the May 9th audience of 500, he began his career as a social worker helping poor people in New York City, and believes that “most economists and politicians haven’t spent enough time in actual neighborhoods where people are just trying to get by. Social workers do just that, and therefore understand the context in which economic problems exist.” He further stated that, when it comes to the economy, “it’s time for us to get off the defense and go on the offense” to affect change.

Recently, I read of a teacher trying to explain to her very young students the difference between equity and equality. She gathered the class in a circle and asked everyone to take off one shoe. The shoes were collected. The shoes were then redistributed and everyone was then given a shoe. Only a couple of students received the mate to their other shoe. As you can guess, the group complained. The shoes they were given were too small, too large, made for the wrong foot, etc. They had difficulty walking and running. Some were able to manage with the shoe they received and some could not manage at all. The young students got it.

In effect, the children all were equal in that they had shoes, but only those who had shoes that fit were able to adequately walk and run, actually experiencing the value of having shoes.

Editor’s Note: The NYC Chapter has endorsed the Women’s Equality Agenda, which is discussed below. Just before the newsletter was completed,Governor Cuomo introduced legislation to enact the agenda on June 5th.

During his state of the state address in January, Governor Cuomo announced plans to advance a ten point Women’s Equality Agenda that seeks to break down multiple forms of gender based discrimination in New York. The proposal encompasses a wide range of issues including access to reproductive health care, pay equity, domestic violence and tenants’ rights. Informed by conversations with service providers and advocacy groups across the state, the governor’s office convened a group of 20 organizations, including the New York Civil Liberties Union, to lead the charge around the groundbreaking initiative. Since then, the agenda has garnered widespread support. To date more than 800 organizations from every corner of New York State, including NASW-NYC, have joined the New York Women’s Equality Coalition. Together these groups are working together to raise awareness around the barriers impeding women’s equality in New York.